As the cost associated with food preparation drops, the number of meals (i.e., snacks) increases and the type of meal shifts. (I wrote about this earlier this year.) Microwave ovens make it easier to eat popcorn (or worse), so we do. Frozen tater tots are a snap as a side dish with that meat loaf but not worth the effort if you have to make them from scratch. If you think this is hooey, consider this: nature’s ready-made snacks are fruits and veggies. Better food preparation technologies have made it just as easy to open a bag of chips as to peel a banana.